Securities Division Aims to End Backlog / by June 30

Securities Division Aims to End Backlog / by June 30

Article excerpt

The enforcement division of the Oklahoma Securities
Department has made a new commitment to resolve a backlog of
securities cases by June 30, the end of the state government fiscal
year, according to Dan Owens, director of enforcement.

"We are looking at the cases and trying to make an
administrative decision on all current cases that have been in
office for some time," Owens said Tuesday.

Attorneys and investigators of the division are analyzing each
active case to determine whether to proceed in-house
administratively, file civil or criminal actions in court or close
it for lack of public interest, Owens said.

Of 116 active cases, 23 are at least two years old, and 28 are
one to two years old, while 65 have been in the office for less than
one year.

In addition, 150 cases are being handled informally and have not
yet received designation as an open case, he said. Those cases must
be evaulated before taking an enforcement action to assure the
securities department has jurisdiction over the issues involved and
to assure public interest in the matter exists, as required by law.

"We are trying to get into a posture in which we are working on
current cases and getting others to resolution and disposition as
quickly as possible," Owens said.

While at least half of the active cases should be resolved
before the end of June, Owens said he expects 90 new cases will be
opened.

Based on a preliminary evaluation, Owens predicted only five to
10 cases would be dismissed.

A new computer program is being installed so the time personnel
dedicate to cases can be used more effectively, Owens said. All
details of cases will be on computer, including the current status,
the last activity in the case, disposition, parties involved and the
timeframe it takes to complete the case. …